Running head: INTERVIEW REFLECTION 1

Interview Reflection
Jennifer Dobbs
LDR660: Strategic Plan and Implementation
Siena Heights University
May 15, 2014
INTERVIEW REFLECTION 2
For my interview I met with the Jackson College president Dr. Daniel Phelan. As
a result of meeting with Dr. Phelan I was able to understand the Colleges strategic plan
for the next 5 years, how the college connects with its employees and stakeholders to
make decisions and at what level decisions are made. Although I have been at the
college for numerous years, I was able to better understand what the college is doing
well in the eyes of leadership and what everyone who has a stake in the college can do
better to help the mission of the college and move in in more strategic direction. The
college understands how quickly higher education is changing and has plans in place to
meet the changing preferences and needs of students. Dr. Phelan stated, The students
we have today, and the students we have had in the past will not be the same as the
students of our future, and we are looking ahead to make the appropriate changes.
(personal communication, April 15, 2014).
One thing the college is doing to be proactive and get others involved in Strategic
Planning is the formation and meeting of the Strategic Planning and Institutional
Effectiveness Council. The members of this council are comprised of Staff, Leadership,
Administrators and Faculty. I really think this is one of the most important things the
college is doing, and something we have talked about a lot in class, getting the right
people on board. The purpose of this committee is to research and recommend best
practice for strategic planning, define and recommend a strategic planning framework,
recommend and monitor the institutions overarching quality framework. Establish the
annual strategic planning timeline, define the process an expectations for
program/department level strategic/operational plan development with the workforce
committee, define the process for individual level strategic involvement and
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engagement, establish plan performance monitoring with the process management
committee, identify, prioritize and deploy process improvement initiatives. The
committee also has a A-Z planning process (Figure 1.) to help guide them through the
planning process. The college has an entire webpage dedicated to their strategic
planning processes, documentation and Strategic Plan Index. Dr. Phelan is part of this
committee as well as much of the leadership team. Part of what this group does, that
was discussed in articles in the class, is a SWOT analysis. To prepare they do an
environmental scan by taking a look at the Colleges internal and external environment,
this helps the organization decide its future path. Environmental scanning should
identify threats and opportunities that exist in the environment. The Colleges strategic
plan should be designed to minimize the threats while taking advantage of opportunities
identified in the environmental scan. Then each team member does this scan and then
as a group they meet and discuss. Each month is a new topic.
As part of the environmental scan and the Information Age, the college has
recognized the need for a greater social presence so a team is currently working on a
new marketing a recruitment plan to meet these needs. The college knows that things
are changing very fast so they are looking at setting short term and long-term goals.
One area of focus has been the student experience. President Phelan and his staff are
aware that education is making a shift to online environments and online instruction, so
they feel it is important that when they get a student to the college or a student speaks
about the college that they are pleased with the on campus experience. This is
something that has been identified as part of the strategic planning process and as an
opportunity and a threat in SWOT analysis. This has also resulted in focused teams for
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certain groups of students, a new Admissions department and a community event team
to get people out to our campus. I think this speaks a lot to what we learned about in
class and how companies need to change the framework. Jackson College realized
what they have internally wasnt the experts in an Admissions process, so they looked
outside of the college and hired new staff and partnered with Noel-Lovett's who is an
external party who is meeting with all departments to see what they do and how
processes are done, and then they are then making recommendations on how Jackson
College can improve their student intake and admission process. While the results are
still yet to be seen, because this upcoming fall is the first semester for the changes to be
made, I think there is something to be said for the college realizing where improvements
need to be made and seeking guidance from others and the environment.
As part of changing the student experience at Jackson College President Phelan
also spoke to the radical shift in the Student Services area (D.Phelan, personal
communication, April 15, 2014). Key staff got moved and they are now also sitting at a
front desk area to greet students and answer the general student helpline. Many
resources are now being used in this area. However, those that have jobs in other areas
are now also taking on additional responsibilities by doing walk-ins and the help line.
The college is taking a gamble on the quality and quantity of the work those people can
now complete in addition to using monetary resources for new furniture and staff. The
rearrangement of staff, relocating them to the entrance, new lounge furniture, a snack
station, TVs with digital and overhead radio are meant to make the students feel more
welcome and again, make their first experience at Jackson College a welcoming one.
President Phelan referred to this as the "Front Door." As he spoke of this, and I
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experienced this I could tell this was a shift in the core of the college. The college was
changing the focus from the students who they already have, to the experience of the
ones they now need to gain. It's clear in talking with President Phelan if the college
continues to see declining enrollment there could be lasting negative implications. This
particular topic is where I seen a difference between the college and the readings.
There was not a lot of communication and buy in from the key staff involved in this core
shift, and I think the moral and general environment in that area has been negatively
impacted.
Dr. Phelan spoke about the increasing interest in recruiting International
Students. (D.Phelan, personal communication, April 15, 2014) Just like any other
industry, and those we have read about, higher education has run into increased
competition and some barriers. The International department started several years ago,
but was using up more resources then it was bringing it. Dr. Phelan spoke to me about
the strategic decisions the college was making to increase the international students
coming to Jackson College and partnering with other International organizations to
expose Jackson College students to international opportunities. (D.Phelan , personal
communication, April 15, 2014) Some of the International changes include the addition
of a study aboard program, a host family program, and International Student
Organization, Brazil-Connect teams and a consortium with a University for transfer
opportunities. Dr. Phelan made it cleat that while the focus is on expanding and
increasing enrollment the top priority in this initiative, again was the experience of the
students.
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After this interview I had a greater understanding of what is involved in some
decisions that I have not understood previous to hearing Dr. Phelans explanations. I
was pleased to hear that the college is putting the focus back on the experience of
students, which is something that I am very passionate about. Every semester I get to
work with a group of 20-30 students. I see them everyday, and sometimes even more
then their own families see them. I am not able to pay them much, but what I believe I
give them is an experience that makes them proud of themselves, allows them to grow
both professionally and personally and provide them with a support system. As a result
of the experience I am able to give my students, they feel connected to the college. I
shared this feeling and some of my practices with Dr. Phelan and was immediately
invited to share my story and the story of my students to the Board of Trustees. After
being a student at Jackson College and working with so many students I understand
how important this kind of experience and connection is, and was very honored to let
the Board of Trustees know how my students and myself are working towards this
mission everyday.
This interview has opened up many doors for me, and as a result I am more
confident in my decision to want to continue to work in Higher Education. More
importantly, I am confident that my work is making a difference, and I am helping the
college move in the right direction. I am now working with our Institutional Research
department on research for student retention. The college is adding the student group I
work with the their systems portfolio. President Phelan has extended me a 4 year
appointment to the Strategic Planning and Institutional Effectiveness committee, and as
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part of the next budget year, I am getting more money to hire and change the lives of
even more students.
Strategy must be a part of any organization. Without looking at what is to come a
company can not make proper plans for how to succeed in a world that is forever
changing. A good strategy involves looking outside of the current workings of a
company, and looking out into the world. It involves a little bit of luck and taking a lot of
chances. Strategy in a company needs to be executed at the right time, with the right
people or there is a chance the company could be worse off then before they changed.
There is no longer an option as a company to stay as you are, and still be relevant in
your market. The customers are now driving the decisions of a strategy and its
important to listen to what they are saying. Who a company serves today, is not whom
they will serve tomorrow and the way they do business cannot always remain the same.
To keep up with competition a business needs to figure out the next target, or
opportunity, by using every resource possible. Without strategy, I believe there will not
be success.





INTERVIEW REFLECTION 8

Figure 1